Tl;dr version of the below: SL Nusbaum was liable for the loss of thousands of dollars of our property and refuses to address the issue.

 

Long version:

 

I've been unemployed for a year and a half. Making rent has been a struggle for most of this time. We've had a lot of late payments, including late enough that the complex sought and obtained possession of the property. We were temporarily evicted on June 10th, but the regional manager interceded. When she found out that, despite all of our obvious struggles, the on-site management never once provided us with resources to help with our rent problems, she was severely disappointed in their performance. She said she would go so far as to attempt to get the eviction vacated, so it wouldn't be on our record.

 

Coming up with July's payment was hard, again. We were served with an eviction notice on our door on 7/22. I left several messages after that to advise the leasing office we would have the money together before the eviction date in order to stay in our apartment. As is often the case with this office, our messages went unreturned. On the night of 7/28, I obtained money orders totaling $1160 (rent, late fees, water, attorney fees) and put it in the drop box. I called on 7/29 when the office opened at 9am and left a voicemail (they are spotty on answering their phone during business hours), indicating we paid. I finally received a voicemail back from them, only to say thank you for the money, but that they were proceeding with the eviction.

 

I immediately started calling SL Nusbaum's corporate office to reach Ms. Reid. I left her several voicemails and was also routed to other people that the receptionist thought might be able to help. In the meantime, we were evicted and then allowed back in the apartment by maintenance as we awaited Ms. Reid's response. In the 2pm hour, she indicated that she would only have been able to make an exception if we had paid August's rent, as well, which we had no way of knowing. I told her that we'd have had August ready on the 1st or 2nd, but, had we known, I could have reached out to more friends and family for help earlier to have all of the funds available (as evidenced by the support we received on the GoFundMe.com site after her call:http://www.gofundme.com/cae6pk).

 

She said she would contact VP Michael Devine to see if he'd allow an exception and call us back. We still hadn't heard back as of 4;15pm, with maintenance scheduled to remove us from the apartment again at 4:45pm. I called the last number she had called me from to find she was in a meeting, so I just asked that she be told that we called when she was out of the meeting. Maintenance came and removed us, while we just took enough stuff for overnight, since we still had the possibility of being allowed to continue as tenants. After business hours, Ms. Reid got back to us and said that the VP had declined to make an exception, but that we were welcome to plead our case to him directly the next day. He would be in meetings all morning, but he is very good at returning calls, she said. She, also, said that the least she could do for us is allow business hours access over the next day or two to collect our things.

 

I left a voicemail for Mr. Devine that night and the next morning. We never heard back from him. When we arrived on the property around 10:30am to get access to retrieve more of our things, especially our three cats, we were denied access and told that animal control was on the way. I pleaded for them to hold off animal control until they had confirmed my conversation with the regional manager granting us access. They refused and banned us from the property. We were told they'd call us when animal control was on site, but the property manager (first name of Hollie, do not know the last) has made a habit of lying (during the June 10th eviction, she, through her assistants, said they had contacted the regional manager, but Ms. Reid contradicted that directly when we spoke later in the day).

 

So we parked our car where we could see our apartment and came back on the property when we saw animal control arrive.

 

Interestingly, despite the office knowing our apartment was in Chesapeake, they contacted the Portsmouth animal control, giving me the impression they were trying everything they could to avoid our knowing when the process was starting. I advised the officers of the jurisdiction issue when they arrived and I called for a Chesapeake police officer to arrive on the scene to mediate and to advise of the jurisdiction. Before the officer arrived, one of Hollie's assistants, named Carolyn, lied to animal control and said that the leasing office itself was in Portsmouth when their own website designates the property as Chesapeake, VA 23321 (http://prestontrailsapts.com/), just like our apartment.

 

When the police officer arrived, he clarified the jurisdiction issue, confirming just what I had said. He indicated he couldn't intervene beyond that, as my property at this point was a civil issue. The sheriff who served our eviction arrived and declared that, since we had 24 hours, we had no claim to get back into the property. He wasn't in a position to be able to weigh my story about the regional manager or claim that I was denied reaccess even during the 24 hour window, which I could understand. He said all of the property was now SL Nusbaums, which I understood less, because the eviction paperwork stated that they would make every attempt to handle removed property with care, implying that it would return to us, since that is the only reason for us to care about the condition.

 

We weren't allowed to retrieve our cats under supervision, but the property people and Chesapeake officer did so. The process traumatized two of our cats, who we received with scratches and blood dripping from one of them. Also, they refused to use the proper carriers we had in the apartment because two of them weren't put together. Instead, they used the one that was put together and two that we had left on our patio to provide shelter to stray cats during the winter, even being used several times by a possum. The smells that this put on our two cats now have them essentially unable to recognize each other (despite being siblings) and hissing at each other.

 

After many unreturned calls, we were finally informed that we could access the apartment for our things starting Friday, August 2nd. We would then have until end of business on August 9th. We were ecstatic.

 

Until we got there. Our apartment was ransacked. All electronics gone. Collectibles gone. My wife's handbags gone. The list is still being put together. The leasing agent was surprised to hear this, so it appears to be an inside job of theft, which I almost expected, given how unethical onsite management appears to be.

 

We called the police to report the theft and were advised that it was a civil matter, since property management had the right to deal with it as they chose. I pointed out the eviction papers saying our property was supposed to be placed in a public right of way with as much care as possible. He countered with a page further in that said the could store it for 24 hours and then deal with it as desired. I pointed out that they banned me from the property before that time elapsed, but he indicated that was still a civil matter. The officer did indicate several of our items were already gone when he helped retrieve the cats on Wednesday and should have recordings from the apartment to demonstrate that.

 

When I arrived Monday, still not having heard back from the regional manager on 3 voicemails left about recent developments, I spoke with an assistant at the property. She indicated that she had found the patio door unlocked when she assisted with the cats on Wednesday at 2pm. The suggestion seemed to be that someone may have gained entry the night before. If that is the case, property management was responsible for securing the storage and had ownership of the property and liability for loss of property that was still mine until the 24 hours completed.

 

I believe that my property left the site by way of the maintenance man, who had a friend with a covered flat bed truck hovering around our apartment when we were retrieving our cats.

 

After leaving several more voicemails for both regional manager Karen Reid and VP Michael Devine, they called back and left a voicemail at 3:16pm Wednesday, August 7th. I didnt get to retrieve the message until 4pm. Upon returning the call, Mr Devine was not available. Ms Reid tried in vain to get him for a call, but was unable. She indicated it was important all three of us talk, so we scheduled a 9am call.

 

Upon the start of that call, Mr Devine was hostile and aggressive. He interrupted me frequently and told me that i had to keep it brief. He would make inaccurate statements about events, but cut me off with the same brevity concerns when I tried to address the points. I expressed my confusion as to why all three of us had so needed to be on this call if his unwavering stance was going to be that I should go through the courts. That could have been handled in any number of more efficient means that were respectful of all of our time.

 

 

During this rather unproductive call, SL Nusbaum didn't address officially whether they considered the property stolen or removed as part of the eviction process. Seeing as how all large furniture was still in place, it casts significant doubts on it being the eviction. Seeing as how more things were packed up to take that could be sold for profit (movies and such), the actions wouldn't  suggest an outside thief unsure of their safety. We continue to believe an employee or employees began cherry picking our property when we both had rights to it under eviction laws and verbal contract with the regional manager to extend our access.

 

We're now stuck in a position where we have no fixed address, an eviction on our record that will make it impossible for us to find an apartment anywhere and so much valuable (real and sentimental) property lost to us.

 

SL Nusbaum is liable for the loss of our property, has the means to be compensated by insurance for the loss and the obligation to make us whole. Please help us.

 

Their corporate office number is 757-627-8611, should you feel like voicing your support directly. They have a dial-by-name directory, should you care to leave a message outside of business hours.